Dental X-ray unit



4 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Feb. 25, 192'? yF/G.

Sept. 13, 1932. RUSSELL DENTAL X-RAY UNIT Filed Feb. 25. 1927 4Sheets-Sheet 2 LTH L Sept. 13, 1932. RUSSELL 1,877,690

DENTAL X-RAY UNIT Filed Feb. 25. 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Sept. 13, 1932.P.' RUSSELL DENTAL X-RAY' UNIT 4 Shets-Sheet 4 Filed Feb. 25

@ff/w ci Y Patented Sept.` 13,v

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TERCY RUSSELL, OF SWARTHMORE,- PENNSYLVANIA,ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE `ASSIGN MENTS, TO RITTER DENTAL MANUFACTURING'COMPANY INC., 0F BQCHESTER, NEW

`YORK, A CORPORATION F DELAWARE DENTAL X-RAY UNIT Application medFebruary as; 1927. serial nu. 171,016.

This invention relates to dental X-ray units.

X-ray units are becoming increasingly more important in the dentalfield, furnishing a recognized and appreciable supplemental income fordentists who are properly equipped, despite which the use of such unitsin the past has been limited.

The tendency in furnishing dental operating rooms has been towardsimplification and unification of equi ment, pursuant to which variousitems o equipment which were formerly disposed about. the room inscattered and detached relation have been concentrated and simplified-inthe modern dental unit, such as is shown, for instance2 in U. S. PatentNo. 1,537,140. The combining vof the several elements, as disclosedinthat patent, was valuable not only from the standpoint of eii'iciencyin reducingthe number of steps and movements former necessary andbecause of the compactness o the whole, but also, incident to housintheconnections and instruments, the appre ensions of the patients areallayed. The removal of fear from patients is a psychological factor inthe esteem and consideration that the patients feel for a dentist, andis no inconsiderable element in his success.

As X-ray units have been developed and used in the past, even in thedental field, they are bulky am1 .obtrusive, impossible to conceal whennot in use; they comprise a constant mental menace to the patients whosurvey them in the operating room, and are also of hi h cost. Asprovided, even though disposer? against amore or less convenient'wall,there was a continual problem of adjustment, both of the X-ray head fordirection against the desired portion of a patient and of the adjustmentof the more frequently used items of equipment so as to be out of theway during X-ra Work. There was also a problem in the ispositionoof theconductors o f thel apparatus, whether supply or ground, as

, well as the conductors to the timing mechanism. The brackets andarmsupon which the X-ray head was mounted involved accurate machining andthe provision of a number of points of adjustment, and formed animportant element in the cost of the conventional dental X-ray unit.Moreover, the construction of the brackets heretofore, necessarilycaused the timing mechanism and control switch to be separate from theapparatus, only connected therewith b dangling wires, as an additionalunsightly actor.

This invention contemplates that the present expensive dental X-ray unitrepresents largely a substantial duplication-of equipment alreadypossessed b numbers of enterprising dentists, and t at utililzation ofsome, at least, of these facilities possessed by the dentist willsimplify the dental X-ray unit, reduce its cost, provide a more com actc5 assembly, eliminate exposed wires, an alleviate the undueapprehensions of the patients as to this item of equipment.

Among the objects of the invention are; to provide a dental unit as asupport for an X- ray unit; to provide an adjusta le support for anX-ray unit utilizing facilities already available to a dentist toprovide as an article of manufacture an -ray unit arranged for removableattachment and support on a dental unit; to improve the construction ofdental units; to provide a dental bracket table as a support for anX-ray unit; to provide a housing common to frequently used auxiliarydental apparatus and supplementary X-ray apparatus; to provide an X-rayunit and a support therefor in which all wiring is substantiallyconcealed; to provide-a dental X- ray unit in which the timing mechanismis built into the bracket support; to provide a dental unit as asupportfor an X-ra unit and having a cuspidor, in which the -ray unit isgrounded on the water supply for the cuspidor by concealed wiring; toprovide an X-ray unit of reduced cost, of simplified construction and ofreduced size; to eliminate s'uperuous apparatus in the use of X-rayunits-for dental purposes; to provide means whereby X-ray units may besupported and adjusted on conventional dental apparatus;

to provide a simplified bracket support for X-ray units to reduce thesize of X-ray units short, bracket, in which the timing and conthe .trolmechanism may be permanently mounted; the X-ray bracket is pivotally andremovably engaged with the bracket table so as to b e adjsu'tablerelative thereto, but movable therewith to provide all of the necessaryX- ray head adjustments in a horizontal plane, with which may beassociated an adjustable dental chair to provide for relative verticaladjustments of the patient and the X-ray head.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1, represents a side elevation of an as- ;sembled dental unit,partially fragmentary as to the dental engine arm, an X-ray unit, and adental chair, showing the X-ray head in dotted and full lines toindicate its rotative adjustment, with the head rest' of the chair indotted and full lines to indicate vertical adjustments of the chair toaccord with positions of the X-ray head.

Fig. 2, represents a top plan of anassernbled dental unit, X-ray unitand chair, showing in dotted lines several adjustments of the X-ray headrelative the stationary portions of the dental unit and of the chairavailable by swinging the bracket table on the pedestal of the unit, andswinging the X-ray bracket on the bracket table.

Fig. 3, represents a side elevation similar to Fig. 1 in which relativevertical and horizontal adjustments of the patient and the X- ray headare indicated by dotted and full lines, as secured by horizontaladjustments of the X-ray head, and vertical and tilting adjustments ofthe chair. A

Fi 4:, represents a vertical section through -ray bracket socket mountedon the bracket.table and through the lower end'or` the X-ray bracket,disclosing the wiring therethrough and the insulation thereof.

Fi 5, represents a top plan of the pedestal of t e` dental unit,partially in section through the cuspidor standard, with a water supplpipe in position therein, with awire exten ing through an opening in thepedestal to round on the water pipe.

Fig. 6, represents a section to show the detailed construction Aof thepedestal, and the disposition of the wires from the X-rayeunit.

Fig. 7, represents a section on line 7-7 of Fig. 6^, to show a detail ofthe attachment of the pressed metal walls of the pedestal.

Fig. 8, represents a section through a horizontal shelf. in the pedestalto show the fastending devices for the cover plates.

Fig. 9, represents a diagrammatic showing of the wiring of the X-rayhead, bracket, timing mechanism, and pint of the bracket.

lAs disclosed in Patent-1,537,140, the pre= ferred form of dental unitcomprises broadly a standard 10, supporting a cuspidor 11, having awater supply pipe 12. The standard 10 is mounted on an elongated base13, on the opposite end of which the hollow pedestal 14: is supported.It is preferred to extend the base as at 15, to support a dental chair16 of any desired construction, which is susceptible to verticalmovements, has a and terminates in a conventional head rest 18. As it isdesired that the transformers for the X-ray unit may be housed in thepedestal of the dental unit, the insertion thereof is facilitated byproviding the pedestals with covers that can be easily removed andreplaced, but which are rigid in place and not subject to covibrationwith apparatus in the pedestal.. To that end, as shown in Fig. 6,

the pedestal comprises a pair of side ribs 20, 35

20, and a front rib 21,-connected at their upper ends to a'flanged castcover plate 22, and at their lower ends, to the base 13. At desiredpoints on the side ribs, laterally extending and 7. Front and rearshells 24, with inturned flanges 25 are provided, which flanges haveslots 26 arranged to register and cooperate with the pins 23 as shown. Ahorizontal shelf 27, arranged to receive desired apparnatus auxiliary tothe apparatus of the dental unit, has flanges 28, 28, and 29, 29, the

latter two of which are connected to the side ribs 20, 20, by suitableinstance, bolt 30, rigidly held to the flange by lock nuts 31 and 32.Each bolt 30 is arranged to extend through a suitable hole or opening 33inan adjacent shell cover, and to engage the means, as by bolts forcovers by the impingement of nuts 34, as will be clear.' In applying theshell covers to the pedestal the upper end of each shell is slidupwardly under the iange of the cast cover plate, in which position t epins 23 enter the lower ends of the approprlate slots 26 of the 110shell anges 25. The shells are then pushed toward the 'ribs andpermitted to slide down until the pins 23 abut the upper ends of theslots and the holes or openings 33 register with the appropriate bolts30, shellto slide inward on the olts until the flange faces of theshells, which are preferably covered with a vibration damper such asstrips of felt, meet the rib faces. The nuts lied and the shells pulledup 120 34 are then ap into tight engagement with the ribs, with thelower edge of each shell in engagement with a flange on the base 13.

The foregoing effects a neat and compact assembly, which the insertionof such apparatus as it might be desired to house in the pedestal, notonly for! those items of apparatus auxiliary to the electrical apparatusof the dental unit, such as an air compressor, motor generator, trans-130 tiltable back 17, 75

ins 23 are mounted, as shown in Figs. 6 90 and the iianges 28, 28, carryeach a 100 ermitting the 116 is readily disassembled for formers, fuseboards, etc., but also such transformers and indlcators as may benecessary for the proper functioning of the X-ray unit,

inwardly extending sockets 36 are provided,-

in which various items of dental equipment are pivotally mounted for thenormal operation of the dental unit. Thus a dental engine 37, mounted ona hollow arm 38, is pivotally mounted by the insertion of the terminalpintle 40 in one of the sockets 36, as disclosed in said patent. Inanother socket a switchboard bracket table 4lis pivotally mounted, bymeans of an integral hollow arm 42, pivotally connected to a secondhollow arm 43, terminating in a hollow pintle 44, the arms housing wiresor conductors extending from within the pedestal to the bracket table.It is preferred that the bracket table be@ the type lmown as aswitchboard bracket'table arranged with a number of contained butextensible electrical instruments, the voltage of which instruments iscontrolled b switches radially disposed about the table, as is now wellknown in the art. The X-ray unit to be described, may, however, beapplied to any desired portion of the dental unit, or to an incompleteor plain bracket table, i. e. to a table without the instruments. l

There also may be other electrically actuatedl devicesassociated withthe table, such as atomizer heaters. water glass heaters, radioscope,etc. (not shown). A feature of the bracket table disclosed which is ofimportance in the lpresent connection is that it is adjustable in alldirections in a horizontal plane, and at the same time furnishes a rigidand in' iiexible su port, amplyv strong to sustain the relatively lieavythough compact X-ray unit to be described.

The attaching element interposed intermediate of the X-ray unit, and thesupport, obviously may assume many forms, and the specilic one disclosedis to be considered as purely illustrative. As shown in Fig.4, alongitudinally ribbed plate 47 has a hole 48 in registry with a hole 49in the lower face of the bracket table 41, and is rigidly affixedthereto, as by means of screws 50. The outer end of the plate has avertical socket 51, concentric with a second vertical hole 52 in theplatel .between the ribs. An insulating bushin 53 extends into thesocket abutting a shou der 54 therein, and a metal sleeve 55 is disposedwithin the insulating bushing in intimafte electrical contact with aground conductor or wire A,lextending through a small bore 56 in theplate. A permanent axial contact 57, which may be resilient isinsulatedly mounted in the hole 52, in contact with a supply conductorB. Conductors A and B extend from their ints of attachment along thelower face o 'the plate, between the ribs, which substantially concealthem, through the registering holes in the plate and bracket table,through the table, and the pivoted arms, into the edestal. From thepedestal the ground coni uctor A extends through the base to ground uponthe water pipe l2. The supply conductor B is shown, in Fig. 6, as beinattached 'to the common fuse block C o the pedestal, although it maylead to such transformers or other devices as may be disposed in thepedestal, as desired.

In the preferred form, which is, the simplest and least costly, theX-ray, unit, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, comprises the X-ray head 58,containing the'X-ray tube, which'` head has a cone 60, and is rotatable'about aV horizontal pivot through trunnions 61, journalled in the endsof a yoke 62. The yoke has a shank 63 rotatable in a vertical socket 64at the end of the horizontal portion of a hollow bracket arm 65, Whichbends '65 or curves at 66 into a vertical arm 67, termina-ting in a7pintle 68, having a shoulder 70. A contact 71 is axially disposed andinsulated y in the end of the p-intle in posi-tion tcontact with the.axial contact 57 in the socket of the-.10@

enlargement 73 of the arm 67, in which it is permanently housed, as willbe clear. The built-in time switch effects a compact bracket, simpliinthe timing of exposures, eliminates t e dangling wires heretoforassociat ed with such -Xfraypunits, and reduces the cost of theassembly; and at the same time provides the control mechanism in aposition ofconvenience to the operator, in which he is shielded from therays emanating from the head during exposures. Further it will be' notedthat the X-ray unit thus described provides a compact, portablestructure, comprising simply the head, the yoke, and the relative] shortbracket arm.

The -ray tube is grounded to the bracketarm in which it is mounted, androunded from the end of the bracket arm to t e water` pipe ofthe Ydentalunit so that no harmful result may attach to either the operator, the

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described is readily attached or detached by the insertion of the X-raybracket arm into or removal from the socket 51. It is readily .portableand can be removed from the bracket table whenever desired, and beingrelatively small and compact, it can be disposed in a convenientclosetor other receptacle, as by its insertion into a modied socket aixed to aconvenient point in the receptacle, (not shown), and thus be out ofsight during the normal use of the dental unit, and yet readilyaccessible and insertable when desired. Y

In use, it will be understood that the X-ray unit is brought from itscloset, (if it is desired to remove it from the bracket table duringnon-use, which is not essential), and inserted vertically in the socket5l, completinga circuit from the pedestal td the timing mechanism uponthe engagement of the contacts, thenthrough the two pivots on the X-raybracket, and the two lpivots on the bracket table arms, as Well as thetilting pivot of the X-ray head, such minute adjustmentsL of the head ina horizontal planeas may be required may quickly be made. The verticallyadjustable chair in which the patient is disposed is used to effectvertical adjustments of the patient relative the X-ra head. Thus in asimple and economical orm the invention utilizes in a large measurethose facilities al-I ready available to an operator and provides acompact, rigid and simple -ray unit that can be attached and detachedeasily and quickly'. v

If desired the X-ray bracket arm may be modified by including a verticaladjustment of the X-ray head, to suplement the vertical adjustments ofthe chair.

It will be understood that the X-ray bracket, and the attaching means,such as the socket, may both be provided for attachment to dental .unitsalready in use.

I claim:

1. In a `dental X-ray unit, an X=ray head; a pivotal support thereforincluding a housed timing mechanism; a contact mounted in the end of thesupport in electrical connection with the timing mechanism. 2. As a unitin a dental X-rayapparatus, ari X-ray head; a hollow bracket arm-uponwhich the head is pivotally mounted, the arm l having an enlargement; atimin mechanism disposed in the enlargement 'of t e arm; and conductorsconnectedwiltli the timing mechanism and housed in the hollow brackearm.

3. In a dental X-ray apparatus, in combination; a support; a socket.arranged or attachment to the support; contacts in the socket; an X-rayunit including a hollowl bracket arm provided with cooperating coiltactsand removably insertable in the socket and rotatable therein. A

4. In a dental X-ray apparatus, in combi# nation; a horizontallyadjustable support; a l socket mounted thereon g; an arm having ap0rtion removably seated in the socket; an X-ray head pivotally mountedon the arm and electrically grounded thereto; a conductor leading to thehead terminating in a contact in the seat portion of said arm;cooperating contacts disposed in the socket; and conductors extendingfrom the cooperating contacts into the adjustable su port.

5. Ina dental -ray apparatus, in combination; a horizontally adjustablebracket table of-a dental unit; a vertical socket mounted thereon; ahollow arm having a vertical portion removably engageable in saidsocket; the vertical portion housing a timing and control mechanism anda Contact for a the head; contacts in the socket and conducf tors to thecontacts leading into the bracket table to establish supply and groundconneclion between the dental unit and the X-ray ea i 6. A dental X-rayunit, comprising a support including a horizontally movable element;electric conductors concealed in the support and movable element; abracket arm mounted removably on the lmovable element and concealing asupplemental electric conductor; an X-ray head carried by the bracket inelectrical connection'with the supplementalconductor, the supplementaland one of said electric conductors being in contact upon mounting thebracket arm on the movabler element, the frame of saidbracket armforming a .grounded return to the other of said electric conductors.,and all of the wiring of the X-ray unit being substantially concealedduring its use.

7. In a dental X-ray apparatus, in combination; a dental unit includinga pedestal, an electrically grounded water pipe, and a bracket.tablepivtally mounted on the pedestal; an X-ray unit auxiliary apparatus Vforthe unit 'housed in thepedestal; conductors extending into the pedestalfrom such auxiliary apparatus therein and through the `bracket `table asocketelement mounted on the table;

X-ray unit including a head containing a the tube mounted in saidelement; a conductor extending from the bracket table `to the X-rayhead; and a ground connection from the' X-ray head inside of thepedestal grounded on said water pipe, with the whole so arranged thatthe electrical connectors are substantially concealed in any use of thedental unit.

48. A dental X-ray unit, comprising asupport including a horizontallymovable element, an electric ground conductor extending into thesupport, electric conductors housed .in the support and the movableelement one of which is in electrical connection with said groundedconductor; a bracket-Darm removablymo'unted on the movable element; an

X-ray head carried by the bracket arm and electrically grounded thereto;and a supplemental electrical conductor housed by the bracket arm inelectrical connection with the X-ray head, the supplemental electricalconductor and one of second mentioned'conductors being in contact,` andthe4 electrically grounded bracket arm being in contact with theelectrical ground conductor through the other of said second mentionedelectrical conductors upon mounting the bracket arm on the movableelement, all of said Wires being substantially concealed during the useof the X-ray head.

In testimony whereof, I alix' my signature.

PERCY RUSSELL.

